Dallas Sidekicks Set Up ForStretch Run

Photo credit: Cherie Calloway

The Dallas Sidekicks are more than halfway through their 2013-14 season, and just six games away from their goal of making another run at the Ron Newman Cup. With a record of 8-2 as of Jan. 10, every win counts in order for the team to defend their PASL Central Division title. Despite facing a tougher set of teams than in their first season in the PASL, in just 10 games the Sidekicks have managed to break a few records and achieve some important franchise milestones.

In the first home game of the season, the Sidekicks scored 15 goals against the expansion Wichita B-52s, the most goals the club has ever scored in a home opener. Then a week later in San Diego, a 5-3 Sidekicks victory snapped the long-time rival Sockers’ 46-game home winning streak. The Sidekicks’ two losses of the season have both come on the road, while at home at the Allen Event Center, the team has never lost a game. A winning streak of 13-0 carries on from last season.

Injuries have plagued the Sidekicks this year, most notably with the absence of all-star goalkeeper, Sagu. A torn hip flexor muscle has put the veteran out of commission for several weeks, but backup Dejan “Milo” Milosevic has stepped up to make 65 saves in six games. The Serbian netminder made history of his own at Wichita on Jan. 4, shutting out the B-52s, 6-0, and claiming the first shutout by a Sidekicks goalkeeper in the PASL-era and the ninth shutout in Dallas Sidekicks history. The shutout was also just the seventh in PASL history.

Sidekicks newcomer Nestor Hernandez has made an immediate impact on the team’s offense, with his 14 goals and 12 assists putting him right behind fellow midfielder Jamie Lovegrove. Both players have recorded at least one point in every game in which they have played this season.

“Despite a couple of setbacks, we have had a good run so far this season,” Hernandez said. “We still have a long way to go and a lot of work to do, but we are all coming together over the common goal of wanting that championship.”

The Sidekicks will spend three of their final six games of the regular season on the road, where they will need to be perfect in order to defend their Central Division crown. At home, the Sidekicks host the Texas Strikers on Jan. 25, the Las Vegas Legends, one of the best teams in the West, on January 31, and the Harrisburg Heat on February 16.

The onset of a new year brings with it the final stretch for playoff jockeying in the PASL, and that is definitely the case for the Sidekicks. In addition to the division race, the Sidekicks have also put in a bid to host the Final Four, which in part depends on the prospective host teams’ play on the field. If all goes well, the Sidekicks hope to extend their time on the field through March when the PASL will crown their next champion.